Wednesday, December 30, 2015

This team has shown they are capable of beating some very good teams, but they've also shown they could very easily lose to some pretty bad teams.

This is a game we should have won easily. Alabama is bigger, more talented, and more athletic than JSU at every position. Unfortunately we came out flat, the shots were not falling, JSU shot the ball fairly well, outworked us on the glass, and was able to take the game into overtime.

JSU was hot from the outside in the first half, and took a 2 point lead into halftime. Alabama turned up the defensive pressure in the second half and was able to build a 13 point lead with 11 minutes left, but allowed the Cocks to come back and send it to overtime.

We had some success when we pressed after made free throws, and I thought we should have pressed more in the second half. JSU had a difficult time handling it, and we had a chance to put the game away with the 13 point lead.

The Cocks had no answer for Jimmie Taylor. He scored 13 points and had 5 blocked shots, but I believe he could have easily scored 20+ if we would have got him the ball more. There were several occasions where he had the ball on the low block in the post, and inexplicably passed it back out to the perimeter instead of going up over the small defender. We couldn't make a jump shot, so I'm not sure why we kept chunking it up from the outside.

With the exception of Art Edwards, who played fantastic, the backcourt had an awful night. After the great game in Birmingham, Justin came back with a 6 point, 3 assist, and 5 turnover performance, including going 0 for 5 from three point range. To his credit, he did make his last 4 free throws in overtime to put the game away.

Speaking of free throws, 28 for 43 is unacceptable, we were under 60% in regulation. I also note that we shot 43 free throws to JSU's 8. That's not overly surprising considering how physically out-matched Jacksonville State was, but that's a huge margin and we probably did get the benefit of the doubt on a few calls. They had 3 guys foul out, which was a huge benefit for us in the extra period.

I was glad to see Greg Tucker for them foul out, he made some big 3's for them, but frankly he was a turd. He talked a lot of trash to our guys during dead balls, constantly whined to the officials, and flexed in front of our bench and plenty of other non-sense.

Retin Obasohan was terrible on offense, and he missed a pair of free throws at the end of regulation that could have won the game. To his credit, he did not allow his poor shooting to effect his defense. Regardless, we aren't going to win many games getting this level of production from our back court, especially if we shoot 5 of 24 from 3 point range and under 60% at the line.

We were also out rebounded 41-37, and they had 15 offensive rebounds to our 10. That should never happen against a smaller, slower team.

Riley Norris had a good game with a double-double, 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Donta Hall only played 6 minutes but had 2 points and 4 rebounds in that time. I would have liked to have seen him when Jimmy was out of the game in the second half.

Shannon Hale dressed out but did not play. Art Edwards had to come out of the game briefly in the first half after re-injuring his ankle, but he returned and played well.

Overall, we played about as poorly as we have all year, but still found a way to win a close game.

The crowd was better than expected, I would estimate close to 6,000 were there, including maybe 100 or so rather vocal Jacksonville State supporters. I was not surprised by their following; I lived in Calhoun County for a couple of years and while JSU is definitely a football school, the Anniston/Oxford/Jacksonville/Gadsden communities and surrounding area takes a lot of pride in their school. They've now taken auburn to overtime in football, us to overtime in hoops, and are playing in the FCS championship game, so it's been a good year for them.

The atmosphere was extremely quiet until the final minutes of regulation and the overtime period when the home crowd finally started to make some noise. With the students gone and the band presumably already in Dallas, they allowed students from Bibb County and Sipsey high schools to play the role of the pep band. A couple of changes I noticed to Coleman, there is now a small curtain between the cheerleaders and band behind the basket, and there's a new camera well near the tunnel closest to our bench in Section F. I didn't think to take pics, but will try to remember for the next game.

Up next, the Norfolk State Spartans come to Tuscaloosa for a 1 pm tipoff Saturday. Norfolk State has been a solid program recently, but they are struggling this year, currently sitting at 5-9, losers of 5 of their last 6, coming off a 68-57 loss to Old Dominion. Nevertheless, it will take a better effort than we got against JSU to end the non-conference slate on a winning note.

Sunday, December 27, 2015

I reached out to Zack White over at Cocky Nation to get his thoughts on the upcoming game. He was kind enough to provide us with the response below. If you visit Cocky Nation, please follow the rules of their site and be a good representative of the University of Alabama. Merry Christmas to you and yours!The JSU basketball program has been on stagnant for the past few years but better than it was under previous head coaches. As you could likely guess, Jacksonville State is a football school. Under Coach Green, the Gamecocks have hovered around .500 in the OVC, which is a conference loaded with mid-majors (Belmont, Murray State, etc.).The strength of our basketball team is defending beyond the arch. JSU is 2nd in the OVC in 3-point defense. The team also does a good job protecting the ball and forcing turnovers (+3 for the season). Defense and maintaining possession is Coach Green's calling card.There are many weaknesses on this year's team, but arguably the biggest issue is a lack of returning starters. The team has had fruit basket turnover in the roster for years, and it shows when JSU plays a team like Belmont, that features 5th-year seniors that are familiar with each team in the league. Our basketball staff writer, Austin, delved deeper into the roster issues earlier this year: http://cockynation.com/2015/10/19/mens-hoops-exodus/.The Crimson Tide are on the rise. I knew when they announced the hire of Avery Johnson, it would only be a matter of time until Alabama would be a competitive team again. With the way Alabama is playing this year, I could easily see this becoming a lopsided score early.Good luck to the Tide in the college football playoff. My father is a UA alumnus, so I'll be rooting for them a few days after the Gamecocks play in Frisco.
I'm also rooting for JSU in their football game, hopefully the state of Alabama will have a couple of football national championship within the next few weeks. As for basketball, this is a game we should win, but we aren't good enough to just show up and get a W, hopefully our guys will come back focused after the long break.

Saturday, December 26, 2015

Alabama will return to the court on Tuesday, December 29th for a game against Jacksonville State. The game will tip off at 7:00 PM. No TV for this one, but you can watch the game via Sec Network+ if you have the Watch ESPN app. Attendance at Coleman has been disappointing so far this season, and I don't expect that to change for Tuesday with students on break and many fans preparing to or making their way to Dallas for the football game on Thursday. For those of you who can make it out to Coleman, lend your voices. This team has been a joy to watch so far, and deserve a better home environment in Tuscaloosa than what they've seen so far.

Jacksonville State enters the game at 4-10. The Gamecocks have been competitive, but have failed to win close games (their average defeat in their 10 losses has been by 7.6 points). They're currently projected to finish last in the OVC, and their RPI rank is currently 343 out of 351 teams. Alabama will be heavily favored in the game, and must avoid any post-Christmas funk as a loss would be a lingering bruise on their resume moving forward.

Stats

Alabama

Jacksonville State

66.2

PPG

70.5

67.1

OPP

72.0

.437

FG%

.419

.397

OPP

.453

.340

3PT%

.314

.352

OPP

.312

.656

FT%

.710

.692

OPP

.694

34.1

RPG

32.2

37.9

OPP

38.2

14.5

TOPG

10.1

13.3

OPP

13.0

Malcolm Drumwright leads the team in scoring at 16.1 ppg, and assists at 3.7 ppg. Justin and Retin have had to face their share of very good point guards already this season. Drumwright will be yet another challenge. Two of the Gamecocks' top three scorers have been out in recent games. Unfortunately, I've been unable to find any information on the reasons for their absence so I have no idea if they will play on Tuesday. ErikDurham (13.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg) has missed the last three games, while Cameron Biedscheid (10.0 ppg), a transfer from Missouri, has only played in three games this season since becoming eligible in early December, and has missed the last two games. The numbers suggest this is a better team when those two are playing. The fact neither has played in all 14 games could also be a factor in why Jacksonville State currently sits at 4-10.

With so many unknowns about this roster and what it will look like come Tuesday, it's difficult what players to highlight, outside of Drumwright, when discussing this team. Alabama's roster is also uncertain. Shannon Hale's status remains fuzzy, and how healthy is Arthur Edwards after suffering an ankle injury in the Oregon game? I suspect Avery will update their status in his next press conference. But one thing is clear, and that is the Bama players that are playing in this game need to come out focused and ready to take care of business. Our guys have put together a nice season up to this point, but all it takes is one bad loss (and losing to no. 343 in the RPI would count as a bad loss) to put a dent into a promising season.

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Despite an outstanding effort, the Tide came up short against a very talented Oregon Ducks squad.

Everything went our way in the first half. The team seemed to feed off the energy from the large crowd in building a 12 point halftime lead. Once we adjusted to their early press and started taking care of the basketball, we were getting some open looks and knocking them down. Justin Coleman led the way making a couple of 3's and scoring 12 in the first half. Art Edwards also added a couple, and we were 5 of 8 from 3 point range in the first half while Oregon was 1 for 7. Unfortunately, Oregon was just too good of a team for us to realistically expect that to continue.

Dana Altman made some adjustments in the second half and they went on a huge run the first 8 minutes or so. They extended their defense to deny Justin and take away our perimeter game, and their length made it difficult for us to score inside. Our 12 point lead turned into a 6 point deficit. The guys kept scrapping, but could never get over the hump. It seemed like every time we had a chance to make it a one possession game we would turn the ball over. Still, we kept the game close and even tied it a couple of times, but give Oregon a lot of credit for making huge shots to regain the lead in a hostile environment every time it looked like we had the momentum.

I think we really missed Shannon Hale defensively in this game, assuming we would have got the good version of Shannon. Riley Norris played better than he has been, scoring 12 points, 5 rebounds, and even blocked a shot on a key possession late, but he was over matched in trying to defend Brooks. He was slow on help side defense and got burned on the baseline cuts all night.

Retin Obasohan had a rough night. He went 1 for 9 with 3 points and 3 turnovers. Retin, Norris, and Coleman all had wide open 3s in the final 2 minutes that could have tied or given us the lead, but it just wasn't meant to be. This was a tough matchup for Retin, as the Ducks length and quickness limited his ability to find space and finish at the hoop. He really needed to have a good day shooting the ball, but he only went 0 for 4 from three point range.

As quick as the ducks are, Justin Coleman made them look slow at times. Justin is shooting with a lot of confidence right now and he was showing off his quick release last night. He ended up with 24 points, 6 assists, and 3 turnovers. He did get rejected several times trying to drive to the basket and made some ill-advised passes that led to turnovers and easy points for Oregon. At times it looked like he might be trying to do a little too much in front of his hometown crowd, but I don't think we would have been in position to win the game without his aggressiveness. There will be learning pains, but I'm glad to see him being aggressive and playing with confidence.

In the end, Oregon was just too long, too athletic, and too quick for us. Give them credit for making the plays with the game on the line and making the free throws to seal it in the end. Coach Johnson said in the post game that Oregon could be a sweet 16 type of team, and I don't disagree with that. I think they are certainly a legitimate top 30 team, and we took them to the wire without Dazon or Shannon, and also without the services of Art Edwards who missed a significant portion of the second half after twisting an ankle.

I love Birmingham, it's my hometown and things have improved dramatically in this city over the last 5 years or so, but there are still a lot of things that need improvement if we want to continue to successfully host events like this. We arrived in Uptown, the relatively new entertainment district adjacent to the BJCC a little before 6, but every establishment had nearly a two hour wait for food. We went to one of my favorite places downtown, Rogue tavern a few blocks away, and they were packed and severely understaffed. There's definitely a market for more pre and post event spots near the BJCC in uptown/downtown. The arena itself is nice enough, but I noticed the majority of the concession stands were closed. It wasn't an issue for us, as we ate before the game, but I understand some people were waiting in 30 minute plus lines. Also, the start of the second half was delayed because there was debris on the floor from the halftime show, and it took about 10 minutes or so for the event staff to get that sorted out. At the time, I thought perhaps the roof was leaking, but thankfully that wasn't the case. There was another delay later in the game when it seemingly took an inordinate amount of time for someone to bring out a ladder and fix the padding on the backboard.

Despite all of that, it was the best atmosphere we've had at a basketball game in years. I would estimate close to 13,000 were there, all but a couple of dozen cheering for Bama. It was loud, and the fans were knowledgeable about when to cheer and everybody was on their feet at key moments in the game. The players seemed to appreciate the energy and feed off of it. I happened to be sitting next to Terrance Meade, and he seems like a super nice guy. He seems excited about the direction of the team and mentioned that Coach Johnson has been great about welcoming back former players.

Up next, we play another school in the state of Alabama who also has a football team still trying to win a national championship. The Jacksonville State Gamecocks will make the trip to Tuscaloosa for a 7pm tipoff, Tuesday, December 29th. Until then, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Alabama will seek another quality non-conference win on Monday night when it hosts Oregon in Birmingham at Legacy Arena at 8:00 PM. If you don't have a ticket to the game it will be televised on ESPNU. Hopefully you have a ticket to the game and will be in attendance. Crowds have not been exactly uplifting at Coleman this season despite the early success in Avery Johnson's tenure. Hopefully the city of Birmingham shows this team some love and turns out in force.

Oregon enters this game at 9-2, despite dealing with injuries to multiple starters. According to their official site, injuries have been so prevalent for the Ducks this season that they have already seen a total of 21 games missed due to injury. The Ducks have withstood the early adversity, posting quality wins against Baylor, Valparaiso (Horizon League favorite) and UC Irvine (Big West favorite). Their two losses were to UNLV and Boise State, two teams that appear to be among the best in the Mountain West conference this season. And yet, like Alabama, Oregon could use more quality wins on its resume if it is to be selected for the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season. This game is big for both teams.

Stats

Alabama

Oregon

66.0

PPG

77.5

66.6

OPP

65.7

.434

FG%

.458

.393

OPP

.397

.330

3PT%

.324

.350

OPP

.328

.657

FT%

.702

.681

OPP

.720

34.6

RPG

37.0

38.2

OPP

34.1

14.6

TOPG

12.9

13.8

OPP

16.1

Oregon's depth has been tested due to the injuries, but they've responded well by being very balanced on the offensive end, while being one of the better defensive teams of Dana Altman's tenure (currently ranked in the top 30 of Ken Pomeroy's defensive efficiency rankings). Five players currently average double figures for Oregon. They are Dillon Brooks (15.9 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.0 spg), Tyler Dorsey (14.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 47% from 3), Elgin Cook (14.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.8 spg), Chris Boucher (12.0 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 3.5 bpg) and Dwayne Benjamin (10.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.5 spg). Jordan Bell, who missed all but three games to open the season, is back in the line-up, averaging 8.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 1.6 bpg and 2.0 spg. Another starter, Dylan Ennis, has yet to play a game due to a foot injury suffered in the preseason. He is not expected to play in this game.

While this Oregon team is a deeper, more talented team than Alabama, both teams have had similar seasons in that they've had to overcome some adversity and gut out victories by playing balanced offensive basketball and defending well. The expectation for Oregon is, as their injured guys return to the court, they will only continue to improve. A win for Alabama in this game will likely join Notre Dame and Wichita State as victories that will hold a lot of water in March, should Bama be in a position for a postseason bid.

Nothing is official yet, but I don't expect Shannon Hale to play in this game. If he doesn't, that makes the task all the more tougher for Alabama. For our guys to win, it's going to take a balanced effort similar to the one they had against Winthrop. Both teams would prefer to play uptempo, but both have been so good defensively this season that it won't surprise me if the game is relatively low scoring. Hopefully the fans turn out for this game and provide a home court atmosphere for our guys. I'm also hoping that Oregon comes out flat. Even though this is a big game for both teams, traveling across the country is never easy, particularly when the destination is Birmingham, Alabama. With all due respect to the Magic City, I can't imagine any of the Oregon players are excited about a trip to Alabama just before Christmas break.

With this being the last game before Christmas I want to take the opportunity to wish my fellow writers at the blog, and our readers near and far, a safe and happy holiday season. Take care of yourselves, and Roll Tide!

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Next man up! Shortly before the game it was announced that Shannon Hale would not play due to a "medical condition." There are lots of rumors out there about what that "medical condition" may be, but I have not heard anything credible at this point and will not repeat anything that I consider to be unsubstantiated at this point. When asked about Hale's availability for the Oregon game, his response was "potentially, but not likely."

The team collectively stepped up and took care of business without Shannon or Dazon. Justin Coleman seems to have found his shot, going 3 for 5 from downtown and leading us in scoring with 18 points. It was a team effort, with 4 guys scoring in double digits. Jimmie had 14, Retin had 12, and Art Edwards put up 11. Jimmie Taylor was the MVP dropping a double-double. I've advocated for more playing time for Donta Hall, but when Jimmie Taylor is finishing around the basket and cleaning the glass like he did in this game, it's hard to justify taking minutes away from him.

Perhaps somewhat overlooked, I thought Brandon Austin had a good game. He scored 7 points for us in the first half when the game was close, and I felt like his first 3 was a big shot in the game. We had struggled shooting up to that point, and he sort of took the lid off the basket for us.

Without Dazon, I've said that Coleman stepping up is a must. In addition to his 18 points he had 5 assists to 3 turnovers. I thought he did a fine job running point for the most part, and despite giving up 17 first half points to Keon Johnson, I actually thought he did an adequate job defensively on him.

We made some defensive adjustments in the second half and played mostly a softer man with some half-court trapping mixed in, allowing Winthrop to put some shots up from the outside. They never found their groove, going only 5 of 26 from the 3 point range on the game, and we were able to stretch the lead out to 23 points at one time. Winthrop made a small charge to get it back down to 13 or so, but we were never really in danger after our big second half run.

We were also more aggressive in attacking the basket in the second half. Winthrop seemed to live at the free throw line in the first 20 minutes, but those roles reversed in the second half. We ended up 11 for 17, which considering Jimmie went a predictable 4 of 8, that's not awful.

We had a size and athleticism advantage in the post, and it looked like Winthrop's bigs didn't have any interest in doing battle in the paint. Coach Johnson and staff did a great job of recognizing and taking advantage of this.

With Hale out for who knows how long, I'm going to call out Riley Norris much like I did when Dazon went down. Norris has the best skill set to replace what we are missing with Shannon, but he seems to be in a bit of sophomore slump so far this season. We need him to make some shots, give us solid minutes at the 3 and 4, grab a few rebounds, and play better defense.

The crowd was actually better than I expected, though still not what I would have liked. I would estimate about 5,500 to 6,000 were in the house. With the students gone, and the game a blowout for the most part, it wasn't a very loud and energetic atmosphere, although the fans did show their appreciation at appropriate times and most stayed till the end.

Up next, a true home game for me, as the Tide will play the Oregon Ducks at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, just a couple of blocks from my office. Oregon was ranked in the top 25 for much of the season until a tough loss at Boise, but they still sit at 8-2 and project to be a solid tournament team. The Knight-Eady group has done a fantastic job of marketing the Vulcan Classic, and I can say that the city of Birmingham is truly excited about hosting Bama basketball. This is a great opportunity for us to pick up another quality win against tough competition. Tip-off is set for 8 pm Monday night, and for those of you who can't make it to my hood, the game will be televised on ESPNU.

I'm superstitious so I'm going to stay away from previews going forward. Besides, MS has done a better job of it than I have the last 2 years :)

We are #23 according to this. Assuming we only lose 1 more before conference play all of a sudden we have loftier goals ahead of us. Heck, I'll go ahead and predict a W Monday night (I will be in attendance thanks to DJC) and say we win out the OoC schedule (10-2).
Unless my eyesight is bad, only UF and UK are higher up the list than us... with SC lite rounding out the SEC in the top 50 RPI.

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Alabama will play their first game in Coleman Coliseum in 26 days when they tip off against Winthrop on Wednesday at 8:00 PM. The game will be televised on SEC Network. The hope is that fans in the Tuscaloosa area will forsake the SEC Network and head out to Coleman Coliseum to show support for this team that has really generated some excitement in its 6-2 start, with four of those wins coming outside the friendly walls of Coleman. Seriously, if you can easily make it out to the game, be there. This team deserves your support.

Winthrop also sits at 6-2 entering this game. Their two losses were on the road to N.C. State and Georgia, games in which they were very competitive before falling late in those games. I had the opportunity to watch the Winthrop/Georgia game. I was impressed with Winthrop's performance in that game, and believe they could pose a danger to Alabama's winning streak. This Winthrop program went through some down times once Gregg Marshall left for Wichita State, but Pat Kelsey has done a good job in four seasons in resurrecting this Winthrop program. His 53 victories in his first three seasons at Winthrop are only behind Marshall in terms of success through the first three seasons. The Eagles were picked to finish third in the Big South conference in the preseason poll, and their early play suggests they will certainly be in the mix for a conference title.

Stats Comparison

Alabama

Winthrop

65.2

PPG

83.4

67.4

OPP

79.1

.423

FG%

.451

.395

OPP

.414

.330

3PT%

.360

.373

OPP

.369

.658

FT%

.746

.673

OPP

.730

33.9

RPG

38.8

39.2

OPP

36.9

14.6

TOPG

12.8

14.1

OPP

11.0

Keon Johnson may only be 5'7, 160 lbs, but this guy can ball. Johnson leads the team in scoring at 18.9 ppg, shooting a blistering 47% from 3. He also averages 4.0 rpg, which is astounding for someone of his size. He also averages a little over 2 assists per game. While it's a favorable match-up physically for Justin, he'll be challenged as a defender in trying to limit Johnson's ability to produce. Any team that scores 83 a game is going to feature more than one guy, and Winthrop has several guys to keep an eye on in this game. Jimmy Gavin averages 17.5 ppg, 39% from 3, while Xavier Cooks (13.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.0 bpg) has also produced good numbers. In all, Winthrop has 8 guys averaging 5 points or more per game.

These types of games always worry me. A mid-week game against a solid, well-coached mid-major opponent, scheduled between a nice road win at Clemson, and prior to a big game in Birmingham next Monday against Oregon, along with a lack of student turnout due to the winter break, and no guarantee that Bama fans in large numbers will come out and support this team. These types of games have been nightmares for Bama in recent years. This team seems different, but it's only human for a team to have letdowns over the course of a long season. And this season in college basketball has been rife with mid-majors upsetting power 5 opponents.

A big reason our guys have been able to put together a 4-game winning streak is their play on the defensive end. What looked like a weakness through the first 3-4 games has really come together in the grind-it-out type of games that have made up the winning streak (Alabama is averaging 61.7 points, while opponents are only averaging 59.5 points in the last four games). That level of defensive play must continue against a team like Winthrop that has put points on the board; and, at the same time, Bama must be aggressive on the offensive end against a Winthrop team that has given up almost as much as it has scored (ranked 262 in defensive efficiency at KenPom).

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

I reached out to WinthropEagleFan over at Winthrop Fans to get his thoughts on the game. He was kind of enough to give us a very thoughtful response, which you can see below. If you visit Winthrop Fans, please follow the rules of their forums and be a good representative of the University of Alabama.

Sunday, December 13, 2015

Alabama is now on a 4 game winning streak, including 2 over top 25 teams with all 4 wins being away from the friendly confines of Coleman Coliseum.

Rebounding has been a weakness for this team all year, and then we lost our leading rebounder for the season, before going to play a road game against a team known for winning the battle for the boards. So, naturally we would out rebound them 44-30, including 21 offensive rebounds, because, basketball.

I thought we played about as well as could possibly be expected in the first half. For the most part, we were able to keep the pace up, and knocking down some 3s early really set the tone for the game. We built a double-digit lead, but would go through periodic dry spells when the Tigers would go on a brief run and make it a one possession game, but we almost always answered and were able to take an 8 point lead into the half.

Clemson dictated the tempo for much of the second half. Give them credit for sticking around and coming back to take the lead late in the game. Even with our success on the offensive glass, we had a 9 minute stretch where we only scored one field goal. Taylor, Hall, and Kessens all missed bunnies that could have made the end of this game much less dramatic.

Coach Johnson had a great game plan defensively. We fronted Blossomgame to deny him the ball, and double teamed him as soon as he got it. This came at the cost of giving more opportunities to Nnoko, who was almost able to pick up enough of the slack to beat us.

Shannon Hale frustrates me at times, and he had a few unforced turnovers again today, but obviously he made the big play when it was needed most. Out of a timeout trailing by 1, he stole the in-bounds pass and beat his man down the court for an uncontested dunk that proved to be the game winner. Perhaps more importantly, he did a great job defensively in denying the ball to Blossomgame. He did a lot of things defensively that won't be reflected in the box score.

On the other hand, Retin Obasohan's performance will jump off the page of the box score. He put up 23 points going 4 of 7 from three point range. He was fantastic on both ends of the floor, and he was primarily responsible for stopping Clemson's last scoring chance.

I still think Donta Hall should be playing more. He had 4 points in 7 minutes including an impressive block on the defensive end followed by running the floor and getting an open dunk at the other.

With Dazon out, Justin Coleman is going to have to step up, and I thought he did a good job overall tonight. He didn't score very much, but he led the team with 5 assists and I thought he made some great passes. Even when Clemson was able to force us into half-court sets, I thought we had good spacing and very good execution on the pick n' roll and pick n' pop plays. We opened the space under the basket for our screeners, and the guards were efficient in getting the ball to them in their cuts.

One very minor complaint about the ending of the game, we nearly turned the ball over on the in-bounds with 3 seconds remaining. With neither team having any timeouts remaining, it's unwise to risk a contested pass under your own basket. We should have had someone go long, and in the event the count got to 4 with nobody clearly open, throw it into the frontcourt for a 50/50 proposition. As long as we touch the ball, even if we turn it over, they would have the ball in their backcourt with 2 seconds remaining and no timeouts.

Up next, we finally return home to face a solid Winthrop Eagles team at 8 pm Wednesday night. I know it's the holiday season and students aren't on campus, and I also realize Wednesday is a church night, which is a big deal in a smallish town in the Bible belt like Tuscaloosa, but this team is coming home 6-2, after playing 5 games away from home, in which they were underdogs in 4 of them. It would be nice to have a big supportive crowd to show them how appreciative and proud we are of what they've already been able to accomplish this year. More importantly, we could use some positive energy in the building to help prevent a let down. Winthrop comes in at 6-2, and we'll need to play more like we did tonight as opposed to how we played against Southern Miss if we want to keep this winning streak going.

After a week off for exams, Alabama will return to the court when they face Clemson tonight at 5:00 PM. The game will be played in Greenville, South Carolina due to Clemson's home arena undergoing renovations, and will be televised on ESPNU. Greenville is 45 minutes from the Clemson campus, and the arena (Bon Secours Arena) is primarily used for concerts and hockey, not basketball. As a result, this will not be a true road environment that our guys will be facing tonight. Hopefully, that will aid them in their effort to add another solid win to their resume. In addition to exams, and making the trip to South Carolina, Alabama will also have to overcome the loss of talented freshman point guard Dazon Ingram, who was lost for the season due to a broken foot that he suffered in practice earlier in the week.

Clemson enters the game with a 6-2 record. Their two losses came to Umass on a neutral court and a road loss at Minnesota as part of the Big 10/ACC Challenge. Their six wins haven't come against stiff competition. A win on Sunday night would be their best win of the season by far. Despite their lack of a quality win, this Clemson team has played well, currently ranking in the top 75 in adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency.

Stats Comparison

Alabama

Clemson

67.3

PPG

74.3

69.9

OPP

59.6

.436

FG%

.472

.398

OPP

.398

.327

3PT%

.395

.380

OPP

.338

.667

FT%

.652

.669

OPP

.688

32.4

RPG

37.5

40.6

OPP

31.1

14.6

TOPG

9.3

14.6

OPP

10.8

Jaron Blossomgame is the top player so far for this Clemson team. He's averaging 18.5 ppg, 7.1 ppg, and 1.6 bpg. He will be the top priority for Bama on the defensive end. More of a stretch four than a traditional post player, Blossomgame can play multiple spots on the floor; and is a deadly shooter, knocking down 44% of his 3-point shots so far. Clemson also has two other players averaging double figure scoring in Donte Grantham (11.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg) and Avry Holmes (10.3 ppg, 3.6 apg, .447% 3pt). Based on what I've read from fans, journalists, etc. Grantham is the x-factor for this team. In defending Blossomgame, they can't allow Grantham to take up the slack. Jordan Roper (9.3 ppg, 3.8 apg, 1.0 spg) and Landry Nnoko (8.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 2.1 bpg) are also worth keeping an eye on. Clemson has nine players averaging double figure minutes, but four of their starters average 30 minutes or more per game so they really lean on their starting five to be productive.

The loss of Dazon Ingram is significant. He was leading this team in rebounds, was tied with Justin in assists, and was one of the best defenders. He will not be easily replaced in this line-up, and it will be interesting to see how the team adjusts to his loss. That said, this is a winnable game for Alabama in ACC country as these two teams look very similar on paper to me.

Clemson has been dynamite on the defensive end based on the numbers above, though it should be noted that in their two losses their opponents averaged a combined 85.5 ppg, 50% FG, 46.4% 3pt, and shot an average of 23.5 free throw attempts. I don't think they want to play an uptempo game, they are going to try and limit our guys from forcing the uptempo pace. Alabama has struggled in half-court situations. If Clemson does force a slower tempo, our guys have to be patient, work for good shots, and get the post players involved. It bears repeating that the three post players for Bama - Jimmie, Mike and Donta - did not have a single field goal attempt in the game at Southern Miss. I don't believe that can happen in this game if Alabama wants to leave South Carolina with their sixth victory.

I reached out to Ryan Kantor at Shakin the Southland and asked him to tell us about Clemson basketball and share his thoughts on the upcoming game. He suggested that we exchange Q & A's, so please see his responses to my questions below. I also responded to some questions about our team, that I expect they will post at some point before the game. If you visit Shakin the Southland, please follow their site rules and be a good representative of the University of Alabama.

Q. I think there are some similarities between Clemson and Alabama basketball. Certainly, we both operate in the shadow of football. Can you share your thoughts on the current state and direction of Clemson's basketball program?

A. Clemson football is casting a much longer and more glorious shadow than usual, as we are hoping our bowl season lasts nearly two weeks into basketball's ACC play. Playing off-campus this season (due to arena construction), probably adds to the feeling that basketball is taking a backseat until Coach of the Year Dabo Swinney's Tigers complete their magical run.

As for the hardwood Tigers, it's extremely tough competing against schools like North Carolina who are heavily focused on basketball (only a tiny portion of the ACC Championship Game crowd consisted of UNC fans). Historically, Clemson has not fared well against these powers and the fan attention and facilities reflect that reality. Long term, the hope is that the current overhaul to Littlejohn Coliseum will spark the program in much the same way that Virginia's improved basketball facilities have helped push them into national basketball relevance.

Short term, I've said and continue to say that Brad Brownell will get his opportunity to coach in the new arena next season almost regardless of this year's outcome. There are a couple reasons for this but the two to highlight are his big buy-out and that Clemson's roster is primed for a NCAA tournament run next year. He's finally brought shooters onto the roster and we're finally seeing his motion offense work. They're currently 70th in offensive efficiency, which is the best they've been since 2011. The defense needs to round back into it's usual form, but I'm optimistic they can be competitive this year and make a run next year. If I'm wrong, it'll probably be time to start over at that point, but I'm still hopeful.

Q. As you said, based on Clemson's schedule on paper, it doesn't appear the Tigers have really been tested so far. What can we expect from this Clemson team Sunday night?

You can likely expect one of the best shooting Tiger teams in memory and maybe the worst defensive group in the Brownell era. Unlike last season when Clemson lost to Winthrop and Gardner-Webb but beat LSU and Arkansas, so far Clemson has lost to the only good teams they've played (UMass and Minnesota) and taken care of business against lesser competition. This game will be a great measuring stick as it will be the first good team they face at home.

Look out for Jaron Blossomgame at PF. He's our star player and has shown improved three-point shooting this season. He was already solid off the dribble and around the rim, so being able to shoot from range makes him nearly impossible to defend. Another guy to keep an eye out for sophomore Donte Grantham. He hasn't developed the same level of consistency as Jaron Blossomgame, but when he is on his game, he can do it all and is a threat to score in chunks, often from three, but also by creating his own shots inside the paint on occasion.

3. I understand you guys are playing all of your home games in Greenville due to construction on Littlejohn arena this year. Is that negatively affecting your home court advantage and what type of crowd/atmosphere will we be facing Sunday night?

I visited the Bon Secour Wellness Arena this past Sunday for the game against Wofford and I didn't see a clear student section. I'm sure part of that is because the Pizza Party run until about 1:00pm so it was a rush to get to the arena, but nevertheless, I don't expect a raucous environment. Additionally, the arena is really set-up for the Greenville Swamp Rabbit hockey team to many of the seats are quite far from the court.

4. What are your thoughts on the matchup, and keys for Clemson to get the win?

KenPom says Alabama will be the best team we've faced, but despite two losses, it is predicting us to win (due in part to homecourt advantage). In past years I'd generally cite various players being able to knock down shots as keys, but to pull out a win Clemson will need to get back to Brownell's trademark gritty halfcourt defense.

Sunday, December 06, 2015

We are going to have some ups and downs this year. Thankfully we were able to get a win despite playing very poorly. We were all concerned about a let down following the two big wins in Orlando playing in front of a small gathering on the road against one of the worst teams in all of college basketball.

I'm afraid struggling on the road could be a theme for this team. We aren't a great shooting team anyway, and most teams don't shoot as well on the road with unfamiliar backgrounds and settings. Our fast style of play and insisting that we take the first decent shot, means we will be taking more jump shots.

This was a rare game where we should've had a favorable matchup in the post. For reasons I don't understand, we made zero effort to go inside. Jimmie Taylor only played 14 minutes, and didn't take a single shot. Kessens and Hall combined for 30 minutes and zero shot attempts. The fact that none of our big men attempted a field goal is totally baffling to me.

Unfortunately, the uninspired version of Shannon Hale was back. Getting positive production from him is going to be a huge key to this team's success, and we desperately need more consistency from him. Art Edwards had a good game, going 5 of 8 from 3 point range and 17 points. Retin led the way with 20 points, but we didn't get much production out of anybody else.

USM made a long shot at the buzzer to conclude an ugly first half with a 1 point lead. You could see the confidence in their team growing as they were able to keep it close. Credit to our guys for coming out and playing a little better to start the second half. We put together a nice run to take a 10 point lead, but unfortunately could not put it away.

We were only 13 of 18 from free throw line again. We had a 5 point lead with about 30 seconds left, but proceeded to brick 3 straight from the line to give the Golden Eagles a chance to tie on their last possession. Thankfully we contested their shot and time ran out.

Up next, we have a considerable more difficult road game in Greenville, SC against the Clemson Tigers. Tip off is set for 5 pm CST next Sunday.

Friday, December 04, 2015

The Alabama men's basketball team will look to continue its positive
momentum when it travels to Hattiesburg to face Southern Miss. This is
the return game of a home-and-home agreement. Game time is 7 PM. For
those of you that will not be traveling to beautiful Hattiesburg to
watch this game in person, the game will be televised on Fox Sports 1.

Southern
Miss enters this game at 0-5. To say it's been a rough start for the
Golden Eagles would be an understatement. Their average margin of defeat
through five games is 13.4 ppg. The toughest loss so far was a six
point loss at home to NAIA William Carey University. As of tonight
(Thursday), Alabama is a 13.5 favorite entering the game tomorrow,
despite being the road team.

Stats Comparison

Alabama

Southern Miss

68.8

PPG

58.4

72.3

OPP

71.8

.437

FG%

.356

.403

OPP

.427

.315

3PT%

.308

.381

OPP

.343

.659

FT%

.724

.673

OPP

.663

33.2

RPG

34.4

41.5

OPP

39.4

14.2

TOPG

14.8

14.3

OPP

11.4

No player is averaging double figures for this Southern Miss team, though there is balance as 8 players average 5 points or better. Khari Price, a Dayton transfer, is the leading scorer for this team at 9.4 ppg, 3.0 apg, 3.4 rpg, 1.0 spg. He's solid in all phases of the game, and will be yet another challenge for this young Alabama point guard group. Michael Ramey (7.8 ppg, .429% 3PT) and Keljin Blevins (7.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, .385% 3PT) are next in line. Like Alabama, Southern Miss counts on multiple guys to produce. The more balanced team would appear to be the team with the best chance to win this game.

I've watched enough college basketball to realize that no road game is a gimme. There is no sport that I can think of in which the home team has more of an advantage than college basketball. Alabama cannot afford to overlook this Southern Miss team for that very reason. But, let's be honest, this is a game that Alabama must win. This Southern Miss program is struggling. The aftermath of the Donnie Tyndall tenure has put them in a tough spot. If you're Avery Johnson trying to build a top 50 program at Alabama, these are the types of games you have to win early, to go along with the upsets like we saw in Orlando, in order to build momentum in the rebuilding process. Not to mention, should this Alabama team be in a position for a postseason bid of some kind at the end of the season, a loss here could seriously hurt their resume should Southern Miss' struggles continue throughout the season.

This will be a test for this Alabama team to see how they respond to success. The vibe around the program has been very positive since their two big wins in Orlando. Has this team moved on from Orlando, will they be focused in this game, or do they come out flat and allow Southern Miss to make this game interesting? It will be very interesting to see this team continue to progress.

Monday, November 30, 2015

For the first time in nine years, we have back to back wins over ranked teams. I posted after the WSU win that beating a ranked Shockers team was a technicality, they aren't going to be ranked for long and they are missing their best players right now. That win over Notre Dame on the other hand is as legit as they come. That is a very good Irish basketball team that we beat. I'll admit, I was somewhat dreading this game, I attended by myself as my other UA friends had all departed Orlando, and I wasn't very optimistic that we could even cover the 10 point spread as underdogs. Instead, it was the most fun I've had at an Alabama basketball game in years!

Sunday, November 29, 2015

The Alabama men's basketball team will seek their second straight win over a ranked opponent on Sunday when they face off against Notre Dame at 6 PM CT. The official site does not offer TV information, but it looks like the game will be on ESPNU. If you don't have ESPNU, you can watch using the Watch ESPN app. The Irish were upset on day one of the Advocare Invitational by Monmouth, but bounced back with a nice win over Iowa on Friday. For Alabama, their win over Wichita State was the program's first win over a ranked opponent in 22 attempts. The team should enter this game with confidence following that hard-fought win.

Stats Comparison

Alabama

Notre Dame

67.8

PPG

78.4

72.2

OPP

64.6

.415

FG%

.467

.395

OPP

.397

.309

3PT%

.366

.367

OPP

.408

.664

FT%

.699

.669

OPP

.716

33.0

RPG

41.0

43.4

OPP

32.4

14.6

TOPG

9.4

15.4

OPP

10.4

This will be yet another challenge for this Alabama basketball team. Notre Dame is one of the most efficient offenses in the country, currently ranked in Ken Pomeroy's top 5 for adjusted offensive efficiency rankings. Demetrius Jackson (18.8 ppg, 4.2 apg, 3.8 rpg) is and will continue to be one of the top guards in the country. But this Irish team, while not very deep, has a very good rotation of 5-6 guys, including Zach Auguste (13.4 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.2 spg and 1.0 bpg), V.J. Beachem (12.4 ppg, 6.4 rpg, .429 3PT%) and Steve Vasturia (11.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.0 apg).

Dazon and Justin (and maybe Retin) will have their hands full in trying to contain Demetrius Jackson; the guy is a workhorse. And Zach Auguste is going to be a match-up nightmare for Alabama's post guys. That said, I believe Alabama will have a chance to compete in this game. Notre Dame is efficient on offense (and not shabby on defense, currently top 75 in adjusted defensive rankings), but, as I mentioned, they are not very deep; only seven players average double figure minutes. If Alabama can force some early foul trouble for the Irish, limit Jackson and Auguste, I think they have a chance. I do think they need to muddy it up a little, though. Notre Dame is too efficient on offense (and Alabama isn't) for Alabama to play this one clean. Make it ugly, keep it close, and keep the pressure on the favored team to play mistake-free basketball down the stretch.

Saturday, November 28, 2015

I asked JoeSchu from One Foot Down to tell us a bit about Notre Dame basketball and their perspective on our game Sunday night. He was kind enough to take the time to share his thoughts below. If you visit One Foot Down, please follow the rules of their site and be a positive representative of the University of Alabama.

Irish StrengthsMike Brey has built his program on the pillars of offensive efficiency and senior leadership. His teams don't turn the ball over, space the floor well, and knock down shots. Last year's team was 2nd in Ken Pomeroy's adjusted offensive efficiency, and this year's team is in the top 5 again. This year's team has all the components to continue as a top-5 offense. Demetrius Jackson, the junior PG, is a tremendous athlete and a top NBA draft prospect. Zach Auguste, the senior big, is also very athletic and capable of scoring in a number of ways around the rim. Juniors Steve Vasturia and VJ Beachem, along with freshman Matt Ryan space the floor as deadly 3-point threats. Sophomore Bonzie Colson is another capable scorer around the rim and plays much bigger than his listed 6'5" height.Irish Weaknesses While the offense has all the components, they aren't quite clicking yet. Coming off a banner year for Notre Dame basketball, everyone knew replacing two NBA draft picks would be a challenge. Notre Dame played almost exclusively in 4-out sets last year. Occasionally, they would go small and play 5-out. This year, with Colson in the starting line-up, the Irish are playing more 3-around-2, and they're showing some confusion. The ball movement isn't quite as crisp as guys are feeling out new roles. In each of their last 2 games, the Irish built double-digit leads in the first half, only to see them melt away in the second. A lot of this had to do with defenses adjusting and ND not having an immediate answer. The offense started to look a little static, which led to extended scoring droughts. While it is something most Irish fans trust Brey to fix, it is a concern.The other concern is defense. If you look at the history of the ND program under Brey, there's a pretty consistent standard of efficient offense. The best Brey teams combine great offense with a competent defense. While last year's team wasn't a statistically great defense, the run to the ACC title and Elite Eight was highlighted by Notre Dame's ability to get stops in key stretches of big games. This year's team has an opportunity to be even better defensively, even if the offense drops off a little. The thing to watch with Notre Dame is whether or not their defense is dictated by their offense or vice versa. In the second half against Monmouth, the Irish missed some early shots around the rim, and it seemed to impact their defensive effort. If the Irish can dig a little deeper on defense, even when shots aren't falling, they'll be a very good team. If not, it could be a long year in the deep and difficult ACC.Impression of the Alabama ProgramAs any Irish basketball fan will tell you, it ain't easy living in football's shadow. I imagine that Tuscaloosa is one of the few places in America where football's shadow is even bigger than Notre Dame's. However, where Alabama basketball has a clear advantage over the Irish is in facilities. Pictures of Alabama's basketball facilities look great. The Irish still practice in a basement gym named the Pit (and not out of affection). Avery Johnson feels like a high risk/reward hire for Alabama. In 1991, Notre Dame brought in an NBA guy named John MacLeod behind Digger Phelps. It didn't work out great for the Irish, and it wasn't until Brey, a former Duke assistant who had head coaching experience at Delaware, was hired that the program built some consistency. That being said, Johnson is a much higher profile guy with a much better NBA track record than MacLeod. I like the hire because he can bring some identity to the program. He's a guy who loves defensive intensity and likes to push the pace offensively. As the college game starts to see a lot more ball screens, Johnson's NBA experience will be valuable. I really like the hire, but Johnson is going to need to show his staff can recruit at a level to get the Tide back in to the upper tier of the SEC.Thoughts on the Match-UpI'll admit, I haven't seen Alabama play this season, but looking at the numbers, it will be an interesting conflict of styles. The Irish are an offensive machine with a serviceable defense. The Tide seem to be built the other way around. I see this coming down to two things. First, can Alabama score by dictating tempo. The Tide play much quicker than the Irish, who are becoming one of the more deliberate half court teams in the country. Second, can the Irish make shots. Dayton shoots the ball at about the same percentage as Notre Dame, and Alabama struggled with the Flyers.Watch the fatigue factor in this one. Coach Johnson has been a little more balanced in his minutes than Coach Brey. If heavy legs cause Jackson or Auguste to pick up some early whistles, it could represent a huge advantage for Alabama. If I'm coaching the Tide Sunday, I look for ways to push tempo vs. the Irish and see if I can run them a bit to expose their short bench.

Friday, November 27, 2015

Before I get into the details of this game, let me say that first and foremost our thoughts and prayers are with Anton Grady, the Wichita State player who is hospitalized after leaving the court on a stretcher with an apparent head injury with 3 minutes remaining in the game.

For the first time in 22 tries, after three and a half years, we finally defeated a ranked opponent. It was a huge upset, as we were 10 point underdogs coming into the game. Now, before we get too excited, please note that WSU is now 2-3, will not be ranked in the upcoming polls, and is playing without their best player who happens to be their only true point guard. All of that being said, it was still a huge win for a team.

Defense was the story of this game. In my last recap, I noted that we don't change defenses very often. That changed today, as Coach Johnson opened up in a half-court trap, and made several defensive adjustments throughout the game that seemed to keep Wichita State out of sync.

When we led 17-12 with 8 minutes to play in the first half, only to surrender the lead before halftime, I feared this game would follow the script of our other losses this year, play well early, get blown out in the second half. Instead, the team kept battling every time things started to look bleak, and put themselves in position to win before making the plays at both ends of the court in the final minute to pull off the upset.

I'm very proud of this team. They've looked awful against quality competition this year, and it wasn't always pretty today, but they stuck with it and got the job done. The good Shannon Hale was back, he scored 20 points and actually showed some aggressiveness in attacking the basket at key moments late in the second half. Riley Norris also had a great game, scoring 12 and making 2 of 4 from three point range. Dazon Ingram added 11 points but had 5 turnovers to only 3 assists. Justin Coleman struggled going 0 for 7 from downtown including some awful misses that weren't even close.

The Shockers went with a zone defense much of the second half, and it seemed to really frustrate our offense. We only made 5 of 20 from downtown, but we seemed to make them at key moments when we needed them the most. Their zone helped them control the tempo, and it was more of a half-court type of game than I think we would prefer to play. In a sense, we beat them at their own game, but ironically I'm not sure we would have been able to beat them if we were able to play as fast as we would have liked. Even though the shots weren't falling, we were aggressive in attacking the basket and able to get to the free throw line.

Ted Valentine and his crew were inconsistent at best, and Jeff Pon made several calls that I disagreed with, both for and against us. Speaking of officiating, I want to go back to the Grady injury for a moment. It is my understanding that according to the rules, the officials should only stop the clock for an injured defensive player if they need to review for an intentional foul. They did stop the play to review it after Gregg Marshall adamantly claimed that he was elbowed, but that is a rule that needs to change, in my opinion. I understand if a score is imminent, the officials should not blow a play dead if a team is seconds away from an uncontested layup or dunk, but otherwise no player should lie on the court more than 4 or 5 seconds without medical attention in my opinion. As some of you know, I officiate basketball at the high school level. Last year, I had a similar situation, a defensive player went down in a heap in the back-court in transition. I immediately blew the play dead, and during the delay the offensive coach took issue with my decision. I told him, "by rule, you are right, but it's a player safety issue in my mind and I would have done the same for your player." I'm no doctor, but I know with some types of injuries response time is of paramount importance, and I'm not going to risk a kid suffering a worse outcome because I followed some stupid rule about allowing play to continue because the injured player happened to be on defense at the time. This is an area that I feel strongly that the rules committees, at all levels, should take a serious look at.
All of that being said, Gregg Marshall was quoted as saying "I was scared when he fell because to me it looked like a heart issue," Well, Gregg, that's not exactly consistent with you pitching a fit to the officials and screaming that Dazon threw an elbow. I've watched the replay, and it's clear that the contact was incidental, and if anything was primarily instigated by Grady. I thought his actions unnecessarily incited the crowd and brought undue disdain to our team. There's no doubt Marshall is a good coach, but he's a weird dude, very animated on the sidelines and frankly comes across as a prick. I'm glad we have Coach Johnson, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching our squad hand Greggy another "L."

This was Coach Johnson's best game so far, in my opinion. As I mentioned above, he did a great job of switching defenses when necessary. One of the great things about going to these types of tournaments is that with the smaller venues and crowds, sitting so close to the court you can hear a lot more of the interactions between the coaches, players, and officials. He picks his battles with the officials wisely, at one point he got us a 3 second call by bringing it to the attention of the officials, and I don't think it would have been called otherwise.

This was the second time this year that the first half score matched the second half, as we won both 32-30. I like that a lot better than the 40-24 per half beat down we suffered at Dayton.

My only complaint about this venue is the scoreboard. There's very little information available as far as stats, fouls, etc go, and the color scheme is maddening. The time appears in green when the clock is running, but red when it's stopped. The team who's currently winning's score is green, while the losing team's score is red, but they both turn yellow when the score is tied. Team fouls also appear in red, while everything else is yellow. The result is a clashing mix of red/yellow/green in various places at different times.

There was another good crowd today, but we only had about 75 fans or so. It was a road environment for the most part, but our small crowd was loud and we had a lot of fun at the end of the game. We had several Xavier fans sitting around us, who were very gracious and supportive of our team. The WSU fans we interacted with after the game were all also very nice. One even apologized for the rudeness of their fans, but they've been pretty well behaved for the most part from what I've seen at this tournament.

Up next, another top 25 opponent, as we play number 17 Notre Dame for 5th place Sunday night at 7pm ET.

Thursday, November 26, 2015

Following a disappointing showing against Xavier, the Alabama men's
basketball team will attempt to bounce back in Orlando against yet
another quality foe in Wichita State. Obviously there will be plenty of
talk about Alabama's courtship of Gregg Marshall before turning to Avery
Johnson. But I believe the more important discussion is why Alabama has
looked seemingly so clueless in two games against quality competition
so far. The next couple of days are important for this Alabama team. Alabama has looked, more or less, pitiful
against quality competition so far. Did I expect them to win at Dayton or on a
neutral floor against Xavier? No. I did expect them to be more
competitive, and not lose both games by a combined 51 points! This team
has some holes, no doubt about it, but I believe they're better than
what we've seen. In my humble opinion, the problem is Avery is asking
this team to play a brand of basketball it's simply not capable of
playing; and by doing so he's giving them no chance to compete against
better teams. I'm all for him recruiting players for the brand of
basketball he wants to play and playing that style. But, as the head
coach, he owes it to the current players to game plan in a way that
allows them the best chance to win. This team isn't capable of
consistently shooting the ball well so I fail to understand the logic in
playing fast and creating more possessions for the opposing team,
particularly when this Alabama team is far from lockdown on the
defensive end (Xavier's second half numbers - 56% FG, 45% 3pt% - along
with the 19 free throw attempts in the 1st half when Alabama had a
chance to build a sizable lead due to Xavier's poor shooting). Playing
fast is great in theory, but in both the Dayton and Xavier games, when
adjustments were made on the defensive end by those teams, Alabama did
not respond well. It's only four games in, but the playing fast for the
sake
of playing fast needs to be shelved until Avery has players with a
better skill set to play that way. Otherwise blowout defeats are going
to be the rule, not the exception, and this team is going to be lucky to
finish .500. Who cares how pretty or "fun" it is if the end
result (losses) is the same as it was under Grant?

Wichita
State enters this game following a loss to USC on Thursday. Wichita is
ranked 20th in the AP poll, but will likely exit the next poll as they
currently sit at 2-2. The Shockers are vulnerable right now as Fred Van
Vleet, their starting point guard, and arguably their best overall
player, is sitting out with a hamstring injury. Nevertheless, they're
still a veteran, well-coached team with a fanbase that travels, and
there will be pressure for them to bounce back and finish strong this
weekend. For all intents and purposes, tomorrow will be like a true road
game environment for Alabama as the Shocker fans will easily outnumber
the Crimson Tide supporters in attendance. This Bama team showed an
ability to bounce back following the loss at Dayton. Let's hope they can
do it again.

Alabama

Wichita State

68.8

PPG

75.0

75.2

OPP

66.5

.417

FG%

.401

.417

OPP

.422

.322

3PT%

.313

.378

OPP

.388

.629

FT%

.745

.670

OPP

.656

33.8

RPG

.398

44.0

OPP

35.0

15.3

TOPG

11.5

16.8

OPP

16.3

Ron Baker has been forced to take up the slack while Van Vleet sits out. He's responded by averaging 21.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.3 apg and has knocked down 43% of his 3 point shots. Alabama must limit his production tomorrow. The other double figure scorer for Wichita State is Anton Grady. He's averaging 10.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg, and 1.0 bpg. In total, Wichita State has seven players that are averaging 5 points or higher so there is balance on the offensive end. As of now, Van Vleet is expected to miss all three games in Orlando. His backup, Landry Shamet, also sat out the USC game. His status for the remainder of the event is unknown. In their place, Wichita has been playing Baker and Ty Taylor II, a freshman, at the point. Alabama needs to exploit Wichita's weakness and inexperience at that position. Forcing turnovers while not allowing Wichita State to control the pace of the game will be imperative for Alabama. Post scoring has also been an issue for Alabama. It would be nice to see more touches for Jimmie (only 4.25 field goal attempts per game so far) and Mike (2.25 field goal attempts per game, despite the fact that Mike has converted 88% of his field goals).

Turnovers, fouls, and air-balls, that was the story of the game for Alabama. We got off to a great start, especially defensively. Xavier didn't score a basket until nearly 6 minutes into the game, and we were able to attack the basket to take a 9-2 lead. Xavier made some adjustments and started playing a softer man before switching to a zone, which completely shut down our offense. We were 5 of 28 from 3 point range. Eventually, Xavier started making some shots and they were able to come back and put the game away.

On the positive side, we didn't completely fold when things went south. Shannon Hale made a 3 at the end of the first half to cut the lead to 3, and while we never really threatened after the 15 minute mark of the second half, we at least answered enough to keep the score somewhat respectable. Early in the game we did a good job of keeping them off the boards, but Xavier finally took control of the glass as they are prone to do.

Defense was a lot better, but we still fouled way too much. At one point in the first half they had shot something like 19 free throws to our 2. The intentional foul call, which I thought was questionable, was one of the turning points in the game.

Give credit to Xavier for keeping their composure despite not playing their best game. They only shot 15 for 25 from the free throw line and had 18 turnovers themselves. Early in the second half, Dazon Ingram had a 360 dunk to cut the lead to two points, but Xavier promptly answered by making back to back 3's to stretch the lead to 8, and that was pretty much the ball game.

Given our inability to shoot, it's not surprising that we struggled against the zone. We actually ran a 2-3 zone, and briefly showed a 2-2-1 press in the second half. It was moderately successful, but with our inability to score the defensive strategy was largely inconsequential. The final box score says we "only" had 18 turnovers, but it sure seemed like a lot more watching the game. I think at one point we turned it over on 5 straight possessions. Many of them were unforced, double-dribbles, errant passes, and travels, that seemed to be the result of guys trying to rush their decisions but being non-committal.

Despite the aforementioned dunk, Ingram did not have one of his better games. He had 6 points, one assist, and 6 turnovers. Coleman was a little better with 10 points and only one turnover, but he was only 2 for 7 from three point range. On the rare occasion we went to the free throw line, we shot poorly again, making only 6 of 10. Shannon scored 10 points but again, I think he did more harm than good with his 5 turnovers and lapses on defense. Our bigs played decent, but couldn't stay out of foul trouble. Jimmie showed some good moves in the first half and probably should have scored more, but he was unable to finish close to the basket. Hall blocked 3 shots in 16 minutes and was a good defender of the rim, but also picked up 3 fouls in short order. We were over matched, and the final outcome was not too surprising.

The HP Field House is located in Disney/ESPNs Wide World of Sports Complex, and is a very nice facility that seats about 5,000. Xavier brought significantly more fans than we did, I would estimate we had maybe 100 there to Xavier's 1,500. Wichita State brought more than both teams combined, and there were also 50 or so Dayton fans across the way. The Xavier fans were louder and more enthusiastic as you might expect.

We had several Shocker fans sitting near us, and while my past experience with that fan base has not always been positive, the people around us were great. We were sitting right behind the bench and they were even cheering for and encouraging our guys. At halftime, I went to the concession stand to purchase beer, assuming that Bobbyjack would tend to our general admission seats. Instead, he also made a concession stand run, and I returned to our seats to find four yellow clad WSU fans sitting there. I politely explained that we had merely left to go to the concession stand, and offered to hold the seats for them and make sure they got them at the conclusion of our game. The gentleman sitting closest to me was extremely accommodating, he apologized, vacated the seats, and wished us luck, The WSU fan sitting in front us then informed me that "you just kicked the president of Wichita State University out of his seat!" A quick google image search confirmed, their University president was indeed sitting in the 3rd row wearing a yellow WSU t-shirt. Anyway, I know there is a bit of bad blood between our schools due to our courtship of Gregg Marshall (and I'm still not a fan of his goofy ass), but I thought it was really cool that a) their President makes the trip and sits in the stands like a normal fan and b) he was so kind to let us have our seats back for the remainder of our game and didn't pull the "do you know who I am" card.

Despite the loss, and their lack of seat-saving abilities, it was great to see Bobbyjack and his son again.

Up next, we play those Wichita State Shockers tomorrow at noon eastern since they were just upset by USC. It will be another road game type environment against a top 25 team. The Shockers are missing their best player and a contributing freshman guard, but this will still be a very difficult matchup for us.